Review on Whetstone Sharpening Stone 1000/4000 by Brendan Thorpe

I love this sharpening stone! I had a Smith pocket sharpener that could get my knife sharp enough for gardening (I have an Opinel #8). After a bit of research, however, I found that the sharpener is only about 600 grit at its finest setting. So this 1000/4000 grit BearMoo looked like the perfect step up and turned out to be the perfect stone for me. The photos are an accurate representation of what you will receive. The removable rubber bottom was helpful when switching from side to side and kept the stone from slipping. The instructions state that the stone can work with both water and oil, but this water is preferable. It was just leaving the stone in the water for five minutes and the stone worked like a champ. I particularly liked that the instructions included the estimated time it would take the stone to sharpen the knife - it just helped me figure out that it was about 15-20 minutes on the 1000 grit side and then another 10-15 minutes on the 4000 grit grit just turn on the tv show! One thing about this stone is that it is very "thirsty". I kept a cup of water nearby so I could add a little water occasionally if it seemed like it was scratching too aggressively. Also, be sure to follow the instructions and use different parts of the sanding surface. I wasn't paying attention for the first few minutes and seemed to end each cut in the same place, creating a very, very small indentation on the edge of the stone. So I rotated the stone and tried to change the end point and it seemed that that little indentation was polished very quickly. My knife is now incredibly sharp - it seems to be gliding over the material instead of "cutting" it. I know some people would go even higher with grit, but for my purposes this whetstone is just perfect. I'm onto kitchen knives!